Arven Offshore Wind Farm has hosted its first public engagement event in Lerwick, Shetland. The event provided a useful opportunity for local people to meet the project team, ask questions, and highlight topics of interest. Almost ninety people attended from the local community, the fishing industry, and other stakeholder groups, despite the very wet and windy weather.
Facilitating Change provided support on the day as well as helping to prepare all of the consultation materials which included pop-up banners, a project brochure, and a community feedback questionnaire. We also created a virtual exhibition which replicates the information provided at the face-to-face event and allows those who were unable to attend to participate in the engagement in their own time.
The Arven Offshore Wind Farm is a 2.3GW floating offshore wind proposal to the east of Shetland. The project team is currently in the early stages of undertaking feasibility studies and environmental surveys, which are required to inform both the design of the project and upcoming Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs). The offshore EIA will be progressed over the next two years and when completed will provide important information to accompany an application for planning consent, which Arven anticipates submitting to the Scottish Government in 2026. A separate onshore EIA will also be prepared when a grid connection location is confirmed. As more information becomes available regarding the project and environmental topics, Arven will share this through future consultations.
To find out more about how we can help you with your community consultation and stakeholder engagement, please call Tori on 01786 820 111 or email victoria@fchange.com.
